Trumpet For Dummies by Jeffrey Reynolds

Author:Jeffrey Reynolds
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2011-01-26T16:00:00+00:00

Speeding Up the Valves

Pushing down a trumpet valve doesn’t take a lot of muscular strength, but you wouldn’t know it by watching a group of beginners. Beginners tend to grip the trumpet tightly and clench their right hands as if for mortal combat. The feelings of anxiety you feel when you’re learning a new skill may express themselves in tension all over your body, with your hands leading the way. So, a big part of developing skill in fingering the valves is understanding the kind of strength needed. You need fluidity, suppleness, speed, and coordination to play the trumpet, not brute force. When you’re trying to develop well-coordinated speed, start slowly.

Slowing down for speed

Strange as it may seem, practicing slowly, with great precision, will lead to excellent fast playing. The exercise in Figure 13-2 is based on H. L. Clarke’s Technical Studies for the Cornet. Your fingers should rest lightly on the valve caps, but lift a little before descending very quickly. You have to bang the valves down, while maintaining a steady breath of wind (and not jarring the trumpet). This technique creates the smooth connection that all trumpeters strive for.

Each phrase is slightly longer. Playing them all slowly, at a moderate dynamic, will help build embouchure strength. Take the time indicated in the rests with the fermati. Listen to the CD performance of the first part of the exercise before you play it. Remember that the point of this study is to play with a very slow tempo and quick valves.

Figure 13-2: Scale study for the fingers.

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